What is a totem? A totem is an animal, real or mythical for which you feel an affinity.
It is not the same as a familiar, which is an animal that you live with that has a
magickal connection to you. A familiar may or may not be a totem. As an example, I have a
black cat, the infamous "Spookie," but cats are not one of my totems. However,
the black Jaguar of South America is a dream totem for me. It is possible that
"Spookie" is indeed a totem in that respect. He does have the temperament of the
Jaguar!

How many totems can a person have? Some people only have one, their whole life, others
have one main totem and other animal helpers that come into to their lives during a
particular period to teach a lesson that is needed or to lend a certain strength. There is
no right or wrong here but it is an individual thing. This can vary with your
"tradition."

I have one main totem, the owl; my mother gave it to me. (No we are definitely not
Native American!) I also have a "messenger" the Hummingbird. Whenever I see one,
I know that I need to pay attention to my feelings, intuition, and what is happening at
that particular moment in time.

How do you get a totem? This can vary quite a bit; again sometimes it is a part of a
tradition. Some traditions have you do a vision quest to "see" your totem. It
may come to you in a dream or during a meditation. One animal that has come to me during
dreams is the Wolf. It brings with it the message of the Clan or pack.

Or it could be that whenever you meditate, you always use the same animal helper
(totem), to help you "get there." Someone could give you a totem, as in a
nickname such as "Bear" or "Mouse." Totems could be an animal that you
have always loved and feel great emotions about them. This is particularly so for more
domestic animals such as horses or dogs.

Your totem could be also a mythical, mystical beast such as a dragon or a unicorn.
These great creatures of the past have energies that lend themselves to some of us from
time to time. Many folks have large collections of Dragons, even wear T-shirts with
Dragons on them and do not realize that this is a totem.

Totems can be quite useful in your life and bring you many gifts, including knowledge,
lessons, protection, and understanding of yourself. I have used the Owl to guard my home.
They literally stand guard at each door and window to the outside world. They watch over
me all the time.

There was a time in my grandsons life when he needed some protection and I asked
the Bear to guard him. The "bear" came in the form of "Brown Bear" his
new dog, and he does indeed guard him!